President's Note

The 2020 NICA National Staff caught up earlier this month to get ready for the year!

Happy New Year!

I would like to extend my sincere thanks to all of you in our community who contributed to our annual Share the Ride Campaign. Through your generosity we were able to raise funds that will support both our national level programs and also go directly to supporting programs and initiatives in our 31 leagues.

As we look to 2020, we are excited to welcome four new members to the NICA National team to fill open positions we have had since last fall. You will be introduced to these four new staff members later on in this newsletter. We have filled two open positions in our Coach Licensing Program, brought on a full-time GRiT Program Manager to lead our efforts to get #moregirlsonbikes and bolstered our development team filling our open Development Operations Manager position.

This year we will also see four leagues launch their inaugural seasons. The Florida League kicks off their inaugural season in just a few short weeks, and Missouri, Nebraska and South Carolina will host their inaugural seasons this fall.

At the National Level we will be continuing to develop and expand both our competitive and non-competitive programs for student-athletes with focused efforts on our Girls Riding Together (GRiT) initiative, Camps, Teen Trail Corps and continued piloting of our new Adventure Program. Personally, I am looking forward to visiting our spring leagues in the coming months and continuing to connect with members of our nationwide community.

Best Regards,
Steve

What's New Across America

Welcome New NICA National Staff Members!

NICA is excited to welcome four new members to fill several open positions on our National Programs and Development Teams! On the Programs side, we’d like to give a warm welcome to Libba Moravec, GRiT Program Manager, Jon Casson, Senior Coach Licensing Manager and, Mike McGarry, Coach Licensing Manager. In Development, we’d like to give a warm welcome to Angela Holt, Development Operations Manager.

Jon Casson, NICA's new Senior Coach Licensing Manager, is an established leader and innovator in the snowsports coach education world. Jon was one of the original IMBA Instructor Certification Program (ICP) Trainers from 2013-2016 and played a key role in refining the delivery and development of the existing BICP curriculum (the foundation of NICA’s OTB Skills Curriculum). Jon is the former Director of Sport Education for US Ski and Snowboard and has been an Olympic and World Cup level Snowboard coach for US, Canadian and Australian teams. Jon brings with him a depth of experience in coach education program design and led a complete overhaul of US Ski and Snowboard’s coaching education curriculum between 2015-18.

Libba Moravec, NICA’s new GRiT Program Manager brings a wealth of experience in K-12 education and youth movement program development. Libba is a NICA Level 3 coach, has created and run female-mountain biking camps and served as the GRiT Coordinator developing innovative GRiT programs for the North Carolina League. She is passionate about exposing female-identifying people to the sport, teaching them the skills to master mountain biking and using the bike as a vehicle to empower women. Libba is committed to developing programs and strategies that intentionally recruit students of color, students that speak other languages, and groups that are underrepresented in the cycling community.

Mike McGarry of Madison Wisconsin is our new Coach Licensing Manager. Mike is well-known already to many in the Wisconsin League and the NICA community as his unending positivity and well-known “power clap” have been inspiring other NICA coaches and Coach Supporters for many years. Mike has a post-bacc in Exceptional Education and has been a Coach Supporter and head coach of a 90+ member team in the Wisconsin League since 2013. Mike is also a talented and experienced educator, having been the special education department chair at Madison West High School since 2012. Mike adds to the national staff an existing wealth of NICA coaching and leadership experience as well as years of curriculum development experience.

Angela Holt, NICA's new Development Operations Manager comes to NICA from an extensive career in the bicycle industry and dedication to cycling advocacy at the grassroots level. Angela worked for Trek Bicycles in the United Kingdom for 9 years and had the opportunity to race the Trek UK mountain bike team. She is a cycle instructor, an assistant coach and mechanic for her local Special Olympics team and a board member for a local cycling non-profit in North Carolina. Angela’s core belief is that bicycles bring tangible economic benefits, they create stronger communities and healthier lifestyles, and have a positive impact on the environment.

Western Spirit Grand Prize Winners Announced!

Congratulations to NICA Sustainers Joel and Kristie Black from the Alabama League - our 2019 Share the Ride Grand Prize winners! Joel and Kristie will be embarking on a Western Spirit Cycling Adventure this summer as a thanks for their commitment to being NICA Sustainers and helping us get #morekidsonbikes. Get to know the Blacks and why they’re committed to NICA HERE.

Salsa Announces Purchase Program for Student-Athletes

Ready for a new bike adventure? We are stoked to announce that NICA Platinum Sponsor Salsa Cycles is offering a discounted purchase program exclusively for NICA Student-Athletes and licensed NICA Coaches! Salsa is the proud sponsor of NICA’s Adventure Program and is excited to help take NICA student-athletes and coaches on adventures by bike! Click HERE for details on the purchase program and go visit your local authorized Salsa dealer to check out their 2020 lineup today!

THANK YOU to our 2020 Sponsors and Foundation Partners

We are excited to announce our 2020 Sponsor and Foundation Partners and are incredibly grateful for their continued support and dedication to our mission to get #morekidsonbikes!

THANK you to our Lead sponsor Trek Bicycles; Platinum level sponsors Shimano, Clif Bar & Company, Specialized Bicycles, and Salsa Cycles; Gold level sponsors Giro, Podiumwear, and Quality Bicycle Products; Silver level sponsorsCamelBak, Yakima, Maxxis, REI Co-Op, GU Energy Labs, PeopleforBikes, SRAM; and Bronze level sponsors Strike Visuals, DeFeet International, Feedback Sports and Canyon Bicycles.

THANK you to our National Foundation Partners : The Walton Family Foundation; The Rapha Foundation; Wells Fargo and; US Bank.

You can also visit the NICA website to view all of our Corporate Sponsors; Corporate Boosters and; Foundation and Supporting Partners.

NICA in Your Neighborhood

Here's a look back at the 2019 season and some of our favorite photos from across the leagues!

Do you have a great photo worthy of inclusion in a future issue of NICA News? If so, please email to media@nationalmtb.org and you may see it published! And don't forget - when you're posting your photos to tag @nationalmtb #morekidsonbikes for a chance to see your photo in NICA News!